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While the Aunt Jemima breakfast brand likely conjures images of
cottony pancakes and cloying syrup, the name Anna Short
Harrington probably doesn’t ring any bells.

But a new lawsuit centered around Harrington -- who was
hired to portray Aunt Jemima after the brand’s acquisition by
Quaker Oats in 1926 -- alleges that her heirs never received any
royalties from the earnings generated by her likeness
and original recipes following her death in 1955.

Harrington’s great-grandson, D.W. Hunter, filed a $2 billion
class action suit -- on behalf of all of Harrington’s heirs --
against PepsiCo and its Quaker Oats subsidiary in an Illinois
district court last week.

He alleges that Quaker Oats denied that Harrington had been an
employee in the wake of her death so as to avoid paying the
family royalties, reports the Chicago
Tribune.

The suit also names Pinnacle Foods, which licenses the Aunt
Jemima brand for frozen foods, as well as Hillshire Brands, which
previously sought to purchase Pinnacle.

It was only after receiving her death certificate, which listed
Quaker Oats as Harrington’s employer, that Hunter determined that
he and his fellow great-grandchildren were rightfully owed a
portion of the billions that the company raked in, according to
the suit.

While the origins of the Aunt Jemima character are said to have
derived from a minstrel show (Harrington was the second
woman to personify the role), the suit also “alleges a racial
element to the exploitation,” reports the Tribune.

Hunter claims that Quaker Oats exploited Harrington’s “lack of
education and age” by discouraging her from hiring a lawyer
to negotiate her compensation contract. In addition to stealing
64 original formulas and 22 menus from Harrington, reports the
Tribune, Quaker has also licensed out her image for
merchandise like mugs and clothing.

Quaker, for its part, denies the claims. “People associate The
Aunt Jemima Brand with warmth, hospitality and comfort,” the
company said in a statement. “We stand by this heritage as well
as the ways in which we do business.”